TULSA, Okla. — Some workers hired by a staffing company to work the PGA Championship have finally been paid a year following the event. It’s all a result of a lawsuit filed a month after the tournament which happened in May 2022.
The PGA Championship at Southern Hills Country Club put Tulsa in the spotlight. It brought people from all over the country and boosted the economy.
To handle the event and make it run smoothly the PGA partnered with outside companies.
A month following the event some of the workers hired by one company claim they never got paid, so they filed a lawsuit.
“I was doing dish washing in the media kitchen,” said Phoenix Youngblood the lead plaintiff in the lawsuit.
Youngblood said she was hired by MVP Event Productions, also known as MVP Event Staffing on its website, to work one 15-hour day during the PGA Championship.
A month after the event, she spoke with 2 News Oklahoma's Amanda Slee claiming she had still not been paid.
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She said she believes she was owed $300.
“We’ve had four different days saying that we were going to get paid on that day since the PGA," she said in an interview in June 2022. "They’ve all passed by. They keep saying basically we’re not getting paid because their client isn’t paying them yet.”
So, Youngblood and seven other people sought help through Tulsa Attorney Steve Hickman.
The case originally filed on June 21, 2022 in Tulsa County against MVP Event Productions LLC and Delaware North.
2 News has been told by Delaware North that its catering group, Patina Restaurant Group, is its official PGA partner. Patina hired MVP as a subcontractor to supplement its workforce's at the Tulsa event.
The lawsuit was settled in March 2023 but Attorney Hickman said it wasn’t until Friday, May 12, 2023 that plaintiffs got their money.
Youngblood said she feels good to have finally been paid along with other plaintiffs.
“We’ve waited a year but during our mediation, we all talked about things and came to an agreement that it was enough,” she said.
However, she wasn’t paid by MVP Event Productions, according to her attorney.
Hickman said Delaware North ended up paying.
“Before the settlement was completely finished, the lawyer for MVP wrote us all and said she’s not part of it anymore. So the other employer stepped up and the case is fully finished now,” Steve Hickman, Youngblood's attorney, said.
He told 2 News information on the settlement and how much plaintiffs are paid is confidential.
Court documents shows plaintiffs claim they were owed between $1,000 to $5,000 each. In total that would be a max amount of $35,000.
Since January, 2 News has been trying to reach the lawyer for MVP Event Productions LLC.
So far, we haven’t heard back, but May 1, 2023, 2 News did get an email from Greg Fielding who claims to be the owner of the staffing company.
He said, “First both MVP and I have are in the bankrupt process. Any concerns regarding payments or settlements will be handled through the courts. I cannot give any more specifics.”
He then goes on to say Youngblood only worked 4-hours on one day and was paid two weeks later. He also claims she admitted in court that she was paid in full.
2 News Oklahoma's Amanda Slee then asked Youngblood in an interview if this was true.
“The only thing that is correct is that I worked for one day but it was for over 10-hours,” Youngblood said.
Over the last year, Slee has received several emails and messages of other people hired by MVP Event Productions for events in other states also claiming they haven’t been paid.
2 News Oklahoma's sister station in Milwaukee WTMJ covered a similar story involving Summerfest employees hired through MVP also claiming they were not paid. That event’s organizers said they have since cut ties with MVP.
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When Slee asked Fielding for an on-camera interview, he declined and gave no response to further questions sent in an email.
2 News has also made multiple attempts to reach the attorney’s for Delaware North since January.
Tuesday, May 16, 2023, Slee finally received an email from a company spokesperson.
Several MVP Event Staffing employees alleged that MVP failed to pay them for their time working at the PGA Championship in Tulsa in 2022. They subsequently sued MVP and Delaware North. Ultimately, MVP failed to cooperate in this matter. Delaware North worked to ensure these employees received amounts they claimed were owed. We’re pleased this issue has been resolved and regret the way our former staffing partner handled this matter.
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